Massa: You work better with friends

For a driver, inevitably his first adversary is his team-mate: he’s the only one with the same car and the only one from whom one has no secrets. Felipe Massa has always had very strong team-mates, of the calibre of Michael Schumacher, Jacques Villeneuve and Kimi Raikkonen, but usually he has never struggled as much in terms of results as he has with Fernando Alonso. Despite this, the relationship between the two Scuderia men seems today to be more solid than ever. Over the past few days on the slopes of the Dolomites, Felipe and Fernando have spent a lot of time together, even when not “on duty” for the media.

“Fernando and I work together towards having a quick car and for the good of the team,” said Felipe. “He is a great driver but clearly I would like to see my name always at the top of every time sheet. The gap that we have seen between us over the past two years could, in my opinion, be closed if we have a competitive car.”

“Let’s hope we are both competitive and manage to each win half the races!” replied Fernando an hour later. “Felipe and I have a good relationship away from the track and we also enjoy ourselves together in our free time: our friendship is a great help even for the team, because one must be united in order to win.”